"Historic Canterbury" a Canterbury Travel Page by chrishc

Canterbury dates back at least 2000 years to before roman times. The name comes from the Cantiaci Iron Age tribe which lived here, this name eventually gave the county of Kent its name.

The Romans made a large settlement here as a staging post between the south east ports and the rest of the country. The Romans built a bridge across the Thames where London Bridge stands today and was the first major crossing of this river.

Later it was settled by all manner of invaders and refugees and also became the centre of the English church, it was the first city to convert to christendom when an emissary of the pope converted the then chief.

It also became a centre for pilgrimages following Thomas Beckets murder and later canonisation, Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury tales being set on a pilgrimage to the city and also played parts in the English civil war when the city swung behind the king and the church due to Cromwell's dissolution of the monasteries.

The city came under attack during the second world war and also since when the town planners were planning to eradicate the ancient walls, however, local residants protested and thankfully there is still plenty of old Canterbury to see.

I am fortunate to live half an hour from the city and it is a joy to walk in this historic city and there is so much to photograph.

Picture taken in Canterbury with one of those mini digital cameras.